Safety device for cigar-making machines



p 1944- s. ioHAN'soN' ET AL SAFETY DEVICE FOR CIGAR MAKING MACHINESFilled May 29, 1942 I INVENTORS SVEN JOHANSON BY NATHAN WALKER ATISORNEYPatented Sept. 5, 1944 SAFETY DEVICE FOR CIGAR-MAKING MACHINES SvenJohanson and Nathan Walker, Manchester,

N. H., assignors to International Cigar Machinery Company, a corporationof New Jersey Application May 29, 1942, Serial No. 444,940

2 Claims.

This invention relates to cigar machines and more particularly to safetyand bunch protecting devices for soft work cigar machines.

In modern soft Work or short filler cigar bunch making machines, it iscustomary to provide one or more intermittently moving endless carriersor turrets having spaced mold or shaping pockets into which raw bunchesare placed by an operator during a dwell in themovement of the carrier.After traveling from the infeed position to an ejecting position, thepockets are opened and the shaped cigar bunches are then automaticallytransferred to the wrapping device for rolling in a wrapper leaf.Generally the shaft of thecarrier is located adjacent to the table plateof the machine so that a portion of the carrier is below the table, andthere is some danger of the operators hands being caught in the moldpockets or between the turret surface and associated mechanism.

It is also necessary, if bunches are to be properly shaped and waste isto be kept at a minimum, that each bunch be inserted into a pocket ofthe turret in such a, manner that it does not project from the pocketand become damaged either by the edge of the table as the bunches aremoved thereby or by the pressing member entering the pockets to seat thebunches therein.

The present invention is an improvement on the safety device shown in U.S. Patent No. 2,275,423, issued to Burning. The device shown in Durningacts satisfactorily to detect the presence of bunches which areimproperly positioned, and it also protects the operator from injurywhen serving the machine. However, this device is not entirely foolproofbecause some operators have the habit of lifting the hinged feedingplate away from the machine to clean or remove some obstacle from themachine while it is running. In this Way the operator may unwittinglyexpose herself to a greater danger than that to which she would beexposed were she to run the machine with the hinged feeding plate closedwithout any safety switch.

The main object of the present invention is therefore to provide asafety device for soft work bunch machines which will not only detectthe presence of improperly positioned cigar bunches and protect theoperators hands while serving the machine, but which will also protectthe operator from injury whenever the hinged feeding plate is lifted outof its normal feeding position.

With these and other objects not specifically mentioned in view, theinvention consists in certain combinations and constructions which willbe hereinafter fully described and then specifically set forth in theclaims hereunto appended. In the accompanying drawing which forms a partof this specification and in which like characters of reference indicatethe same or like parts: Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation on line l-l ofFig. 2, showing the new bunch protecting and safety device applied tothe turret of a cigar machine; and

Fig. 2 is a top view from line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Referring to Figs. 1 and2, T represents the turret of a soft Work cigar machine of the typeshown and described in copending application No. 183,405, filed January5, 1938, by H. H. Wheeler on which Patent No. 2,316,828 was issued April20, 1943. Turret T is driven by an electric motor 28 through a belt 8and a clutch 29, which is similar to clutch 29 of the Wheeler Patent2,316,828 and similarly controlled through an operating rod 13, anexpanding device 10 and an expansion ring 69, by the armature of asolenoid T5, the said clutch being connected by a worm and wheel (notshown) with the drive shaft'of the machine, which in turn, throughsprocket chains 9 and ill connected with a system of gears and a camoperated indexing device contained within the gear box I drives theturret intermittently. Suitable mechanism to effect this intermittentdrive is illustrated and described in detail in said Patent No.2,316,328. The motor 28 is operated through wires I88 from a startingswitch 36 connected to the power line by a plug cord I82.

. In order to incapacitate the machine as above described, a trip meansis preferably arranged to cooperate with an electric control system. Asnap switch MS (shown diagrammatically), of the type commercially knownas a microswitch, is included in the circuit of solenoid 15. A furtherdescrip-' tion of a microswitch is herein dispensed with for the sake ofbrevity, and for further details reference may be had to such patents asP. K. McGall 1,960,029 and A. J. Mottlau 1,668,974. A second switch 76is interposed in the same circuit operating the solenoid E5 toincapacitate the turret whenever the member I4 is raised by theoperator. Normally the switch MS and switch 1% are' maintained closed,permitting current to flow through them to the solenoid and theintermittent movement of the carrier or turret T continues. Switch MS(Fig. 1) is connected at one end by wire 2% to the coil of solenoid l5and at i s other end by wire 589 to switch box 39, the electric circuitis completed by wire 280 which also connects the other end of the coilof solenoid 15 to switch box 30. In order to break the circuit wheneither or both of the above mentioned contingencies occur, the lever, I!is so mounted that when it is tripped by contact of an operators handsor by an improperly placed bunch, it will immediately open switch MSthereby breaking the circuit through solenoid 15, and thus stop themovement of carrier '1 which is driven by a sprocket chain drive I2engaging with a suitable sprocket on the carrier shaft. Indexingmechanism similar to that shown in the above mentioned patent issued toH. H. Wheeler may be used for intermittently rotating the turret shaft.

The normal pocket serving zone of the turret T is between the 12 oclockand the 3 oclock positions (see Fig. 1). Arranged adjacent the turretand cooperating therewith are presser plungers P and Q which press andlocate the bunches in the mold pockets. Knives K are positioned at theend of the turret for trimming the ends of the bunches in the moldsduring the indexing of the turret. The presser mechanism and the knivesmay be similar in construction and operation to those shown in LettersPatent No. 2,157,537 for Cigar bunch shaping machine, granted May 9,1939, to H. H. Wheeler.

Due to the presence of the presser P at approximately the 3 oclockposition or end of loading zone, it is possible for an operator toinjure her hands if they are not removed before the turret is indexed orthe presser P moved into a loaded pocket to locate a bunch B therein.Therefore safety mechanism has been provided to obviate any such danger.

In the illustrated embodiment this mechanism comprises a member I4extending along the face of turret T. This member is hinged to the table36 by hinge I3 and rests on a ledge I5 secured to the table 36. Byhinging member I4 to the table 36 in this manner it makes it very easyto swing the member up for cleaning the turret and plunger mechanismlocated beneath the table. It also makes it possible to more easilyadjust the trip mechanism and control the set limits of movements oflever II and plate I8. The member I4 is provided with bearings I6 whichcarry a fixed shaft I! on which turns a plate I8 attached to arms I9loosely mounted on said shaft. The free end of plate I8 is in closeproximity to the periphery of turret T and is held level with the topsurface of member I4 by suitable springs 20 anchored in collars ZIafiixed to shaft I I and pressing side projections .of arms I9, providedfor this purpose, upwards against the member I4. One of the arms I9 isprovided .with a web 22 against which rests the lever II which ispivoted on a stud 23 fast in a lug 24 extending from casing 25 of switchMS.

The switch MS has a circuit breaking button actuated by a pusher 26sliding in a sleeve 21 extending from said button, into which isfloatingly inserted a still spring 3|. The lower end of lever I Icarries a screw 32 registering with pusher 26. In setting the limits ofthe lever, this screw is so adjusted that in the closed position ofswitch MS, with the opener button positioned to engage with the switchblade ID, the upper end of lever II just contacts the web 22. Anymovement of feeler plate I8 caused by a projecting bunch B passingthereby, or by a hand of the operator, will cause the switch MS to openand immediately stop the drive of the turret T.

In its open position, the switch blade I0 rests against a stop 33, andany excess motion of lever II is absorbed by spring 3I. After anoperators hands have been removed from trip plate I8 or after member I4has been swung on its hinges I3 back to normal position following theadjustment and rearrangement of a bunch in the turret, the machine isagain set in operation by reclosing swich MS through spring-tensionedreset button 34 provided in the cover of casing 25.

A lug 11 is formed on one end of member I4 and acts to close switch 15(which may be of the microswitch type) whenever the member I4 is in itslowered position. Whenever member I4 is raised up for purposes ofcleaning or otherwise, the lug 'I'I disengages switch 16 which permitsthe spring I8 to force the switch into its open position, therebybreaking the circuit actuating the solenoid 25. The turret will remainincapacitated until member I4 is again swung back to its normal feedingposition. In the meantime it is safe for the operator to clear or cleanthe machine.

The microswitch MS is of the type which will either remain open orclosed until it is positively actuated. In the present diagrammaticshowing, a spring 40 is provided for this purpose. When the pusher 26actuates the switch MS, the spring 40 will pull the pivoted switch bladeI0 against the stop 33 and when the operator presses reset button 34 theswitch blade I0, with the aid of spring 48, will be pulled back into itsclosed position. In this way the machine is maintained incapacitateduntil it is restarted by some positive act of the operator.

The switch 16 is connected in series with switch MS in order that themachine may remain incapacitated even though the reset button 34 bepressed, if the cover I4 should be open. In this way the operator isprotected because the machine will not run unless the cover I 4 is incorrect operating position and the microswitch MS closed.

The invention above described may be varied in construction within thescope of the claims, for the particular device selected to illustratethe invention is but one of many concrete embodiments of the same. Theinvention therefore is not to be restricted to the precise details ofthe structure shown and described.

What is claimed is:

1. In a cigar machine, the combination with a carrier provided with aplurality of bunch shaping pockets and a feed table swinga-bly mountedadjacent said carrier, a trip plate connected to said feed table andlocated in a substantially horizontal plane closely adjacent saidcarrier, meansfor driving said carrier, control mechanism cooperatingwith said trip plate for discontinuing the driving force for saidcarrier whenever said trip plate is depressed, control means fordiscontinuing the driving force for said carrier whenever said feedtable is swung out of normal feeding position, and manually operablemeans for reinstating the operation of the carrier, said control meansbeing connected to said control mechanism to prevent reinstating of theoperation of said carrier by said manually operable means while saidtable is swung out of normal feeding position.

2. In a cigar machine having a turret provided with a plurality of bunchshaping pockets, a hinged platform normally positioned adjacent to saidturret above which an operator works when placing cigar bunches in saidshaping pockets; a safety device comprising a trip plate carried by saidplatform and positioned closely adjacent to said turret so that it willbe tripped by a cigar protruding from the turret or by the fingers ofthe operator if they travel down past the platform; operating means forintermittently rotating said turret; an electric circuit for controllingthe incapacitation of said operating means; a pair of switchesinterposed in series in said circuit, each being adapted to break saidcircuit; means connecting said platform with, and operating to open oneof said switches for breaking said circuit whenever said platform ismoved out

